July 12, 2011

Chelsea Hotel Manager Arnold Tamasar Accused of "Walking" Guests

A former employee of the Chelsea Hotel has come forward with new allegations about the management practices of Arnold Tamasar. In an e-mail, he writes:

When I first interviewed with Arnold, the first words out of his mouth were "We don't walk people" Walk being a hotel term for purposely overbooking, and then having to send the person to another hotel. That turned out to be a big lie, and more than anything else it led to me quitting.

In particular, one weekend May 13-16 they were overbooked by more than 18 rooms. I noticed this more than two weeks in advance. I sent [name redacted] and Arnold an email stating : "I see that we are overbooked by 18 rooms. Is this possible? I need specific instructions from management as to how I am supposed to walk more than a dozen people at a time when every hotel in New York is sold out. I don't mean to sound curt, but as the overnight guy I am the one who will have to face the anger of these people." I am quoting directly from my paper copy of the email.

I never received an answer, and for the next week I sent the same email daily. After about five days I received this six-word reply via email from Arnold: "We are aware of the situation."

As the weekend of May13-16 approached, they continued to book rooms that we did not have. By the time I quit on Sunday the 8th, they were up to 26 rooms overbooked. The reason for this is money. If someone shows up for their room, they just leave it to the night guy to break the bad news. But if someone is a no-show or is delayed because of weather, they go ahead and charge them for a room that does not even exist. If this is not criminal fraud, it is certainly unethical and deceptive.

The practice of "walking" is nothing new. But I have never in my many years in the hotel industry known of a hotel that so grossly overbooked. In any other hotel, when they had to walk a guest, the hotel had a reciprocal agreement with other hotels and made arrangements to make sure that the guest had a room. But the Chelsea had no such arrangement, no such contingency plan with any other hotel in the city. They just left it for the overnight guy to bear the brunt of people's understandable anger.

This is just one story about what a lying piece of work that Arnold Tamasar turned out to be. Feel free to use my name and info any way you choose.

Sincerely, [NAME REDACTED]

Since we received this e-mail, another former employee has come forward to independently confirm these allegations. Tamasar's veil of secrecy is quickly unraveling, as more and more members of his inner circle step forward to share their stories. Although we are unsure as to the legality of "walking" guests, it seems a very slimy practice indeed. We would suggest that, if these allegations are true, Tamasar owes a refund to the no-shows whom he charged for rooms that were already booked. Maybe the money should come from the bonus Tamasar will allegedly earn if and when the sale of the hotel is finalized.

Comments

A former employee of the Chelsea Hotel has come forward with new allegations about the management practices of Arnold Tamasar. In an e-mail, he writes:

When I first interviewed with Arnold, the first words out of his mouth were "We don't walk people" Walk being a hotel term for purposely overbooking, and then having to send the person to another hotel. That turned out to be a big lie, and more than anything else it led to me quitting.

In particular, one weekend May 13-16 they were overbooked by more than 18 rooms. I noticed this more than two weeks in advance. I sent [name redacted] and Arnold an email stating : "I see that we are overbooked by 18 rooms. Is this possible? I need specific instructions from management as to how I am supposed to walk more than a dozen people at a time when every hotel in New York is sold out. I don't mean to sound curt, but as the overnight guy I am the one who will have to face the anger of these people." I am quoting directly from my paper copy of the email.

I never received an answer, and for the next week I sent the same email daily. After about five days I received this six-word reply via email from Arnold: "We are aware of the situation."

As the weekend of May13-16 approached, they continued to book rooms that we did not have. By the time I quit on Sunday the 8th, they were up to 26 rooms overbooked. The reason for this is money. If someone shows up for their room, they just leave it to the night guy to break the bad news. But if someone is a no-show or is delayed because of weather, they go ahead and charge them for a room that does not even exist. If this is not criminal fraud, it is certainly unethical and deceptive.

The practice of "walking" is nothing new. But I have never in my many years in the hotel industry known of a hotel that so grossly overbooked. In any other hotel, when they had to walk a guest, the hotel had a reciprocal agreement with other hotels and made arrangements to make sure that the guest had a room. But the Chelsea had no such arrangement, no such contingency plan with any other hotel in the city. They just left it for the overnight guy to bear the brunt of people's understandable anger.

This is just one story about what a lying piece of work that Arnold Tamasar turned out to be. Feel free to use my name and info any way you choose.

Sincerely, [NAME REDACTED]

Since we received this e-mail, another former employee has come forward to independently confirm these allegations. Tamasar's veil of secrecy is quickly unraveling, as more and more members of his inner circle step forward to share their stories. Although we are unsure as to the legality of "walking" guests, it seems a very slimy practice indeed. We would suggest that, if these allegations are true, Tamasar owes a refund to the no-shows whom he charged for rooms that were already booked. Maybe the money should come from the bonus Tamasar will allegedly earn if and when the sale of the hotel is finalized.